Direct TV - 157 channels and STILL nothing on
Written: Jun 06 '00 (Updated Jun 07 '00)
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Pros: Great picture and Sound, quick response on the channel changing
Cons: Pain setting up the dish
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| lpmiller's Full Review: RCA DS2122RD Single LNB DIRECTV System |
Must...have...Cartoon...Network. This is law in my home, as spoken by a curly haired 3 year old with a mean uppercut hiding in that tiny body.
Sadly, our future new house is in a cable zone that doesn't have it.
Well, being a tech head, I had wanted a satellite TV system for some time. Not to mention I like having new toys. So, planning ahead, I picked up the RCA DS2122RD single LNB receiver at Best Buy for 75 bucks and change.
I'm not spoiling my daughter, I'm investing in future daddy quiet time!
Being...impatient, I dragged the stuff out one rainy afternoon and hooked it up to the apartment. Granted, there is that big freaking tree in the way, but I wanted an idea as to how difficult it was going to be to install.
No, really.
Hmm, wife didn't buy that one either.
The DS2122RD is a basic unit with Dolby Pro Logic, Audio/Video and S-Video hookups, universal remote and a semi-literate manual. The dish itself is easy to assemble, being made up of 4 basic pieces that just bolt together. Mounting it depends on a clear view of the southern sky and the proper screws...deceptively easy.
I also picked up the Self-Installer package, which consisted of possibly the single most useless how-to tape in existence, 100 feet of R-6 cable, various screws, nuts, bolts - some of which actually went together, a cheap compass, and another manual. Looking back, I wish I had just bought the cable and some mounting screws, as for all intents and purposes it was a waste of 50 bucks.
The how-to tape was more a commercial for Direct TV then anything. It did give some very basic tips, but the things you really needed to know, like finding the signal, what to do if you have trees in the way, etc, were sadly lacking. The manual wasn't much different from the one that came with the receiver itself, and I found myself using both to get a better picture of what the heck I was doing.
Honestly, skip the package, and go to a hardware store.
Aiming the dish is a real pain. First, you need to set the proper elevation for your area, which the receiver can give you or you can get from Direct TV's website (http://www.directtv.com). There were two things wrong with that. Number 1, the website gave 37.7, the receiver 37.9, and two, the satellite’s settings are in increments of 1(36, 37, 38, etc).
You find .9 on the dish. I dare you!
Once you get that set, you pull out the gumball machine compass and set the azimuth...a fancy way of saying direction. According to both website and receiver - yep, 188.8. No .8 on the compass. So you end up guesstimating the direction, then slowly turning the dish until the receiver gives you a solid tone. At that point, you wiggle back and forth trying to increase the signal strength, tighten up the dish, undo that it as you realize you lost the signal in the process, find it again, tighten again, swear, and some 2 hours later, you're done!
Fun, hmm?
The receiver itself is a snap to install: cable to box, cable to TV or tuner, power up! Once you get everything hooked up, you can spend 20 minutes in awe of the preview channel, "Oooh, looks great, hon! Check out the sound!” before you realize you need to actually activate the service.
Hey, after 2 hours of trying to aim a big ice cream bowl, see how bright YOU are!
The Direct TV folks will ask you some marketing questions, do you have cable, where did you buy it, etc, and then try to soft sell you local TV or a movie package. I went with the Total Choice package at 31.99, with a large spread of channels including 26 music stations. I also was given 2 free months of the 80-dollar Platinum Choice, which gives you more sports channels then the law should allow, and every movie channel but the dirty ones.
Do you have any idea how many movie channels show The Horse Whisperer? I don't think I'll be signing up for that particular package any time soon. Yeesh.
Channels in the Total Choice Package include, but are not limited to:
3 Disney's
4 CNN's (in fact, there are more news channels then there are events in the world)
Game Show Network
Animal Planet
AMC
FX and Fox Movies
TNT, TCM, TBS(heck, if Ted Turner owns it, I got it)
2 MTV's and a VH1
Too bad I can't trade the extra ones like baseball cards.
”Dude, I’ll give you MTV 2 for a Nick at Nite and a first round channel to be named later! Dude, you KNOW you want MTV 2! Dude?”
Picture clarity is better then cable - in fact I'd place it right up there with DVD. Artifacting and pausing can occur with bad signal or heavy rain, but I was mostly pleased with the view, and more determined then ever to get a decent TV. Sound quality is a giant step up from cable - though I wish my unit had Dolby Digital, the Pro-Logic output is crisp and the sound fills the area out nicely. You haven't lived till you heard Barney in Surround Sound.
*shudder*
The music only channels are fun, with everything from Light Jazz, Jazz, Dixie Jazz, Big Band Jazz, and various non Jazz related choices like 70’s music, 80’s, Alternative and Classic Rock – certainly more choices then I have on my radio!
The receiver offers the standard Parental lockouts and customizable menus, though the icon driven controls are a bit confusing. Menu requests are speedy and the remote is logically laid out; large buttons and two methods of channel surfing are available. Programming the remote is easy, much easier then my 100-dollar universal remote, though it maps less functions, and won't control ALL of my devices. Into the Drawer of Excess Remotes it goes!
Overall I’m quite happy with the service and the unit, and cannot wait to hook it all up the new house. Between DVD, Tuner, Speakers, TV, VCR and now the RCA receiver, I reckon I have some work cut out for me come July 21st.
I know exactly where that dish is going too!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 75.99
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Epinions.com ID:
lpmiller
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Location: Plymouth, MN
Reviews written: 100
Trusted by: 93 members
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